"I'm Umbrella Corp's worst enemy." I said, feeling my lips stretch into a feral grin. "And they haven't a clue how to stop me."
"That's big talk for such a small gal," Jemison drawled.
I flourished my blades before whipping them back into their scabbards. I raised an eyebrow at him daring him silently to challenge me. The adrenaline was stilling throbbing through my veins and if he wanted a fight, I'd give him a hell of one.
Roy shook his head in disbelief.
"I've never seen anyone move like that. You must have jumped fifteen feet in the air."
Jemison rubbed his chin, watching me thoughtfully.
"Alice," he said. "Seems to me I've heard talk of a gal named Alice who was a thorn in the side of Umbrella Corp who wasn't quite normal."
"There's more than one person named Alice in the world," Marta said spat. I shifted on the balls of me feet trying to contain the extra energy.
Roy snorted. "The way this world's shrinking these days, it's not far off."
"Are we gonna sit here watching this traitor show off until more Infected come and see what the ruckus is about, or are we gonna waste this bitch and get a move on?" Marta raised her crossbow.
I snarled, my hands going to my smaller daggers, but Jemison stepped in between us.
"Hold it ladies," He said, giving Marta an extra long look. "As Roy so helpfully pointed out, there aren't much left of us these days. I'd like to keep humans off the list of endangered species if we can."
"Too late," Roy muttered.
"Alice, why don't you come with us back to our camp. We've a few others who'd be right pleased at seeing a new face these days and if you'd be so kind to share some of your supplies from the copter over there, I'd say we have the beginnings of a lasting friendship between all of us."
Marta hissed.
"Except Marta, that is," Roy said.
"You can't be thinking of taking her back with us! She was riding Umbrella Corp gear. She's one of them!"
"I was one of them," I said. "Past tense. But so were a lot of us before the outbreak." Jemison nodded.
"True enough. Are you with us?"
I looked back at the wreckage of the copter. It wasn't going to take me any further than it already had, and it was nice to be around people who weren't wearing my face. I let the fight drain out of me—though a part of me wanted to hold onto it.
"Sure," I said, sounding more relaxed than I felt. I reached my hand out and Jemison grasped it. His hand was huge compared to mine. He squeezed my hand slightly and I responded with a grip of my own. He winced.
In the distance, an eerie moan echoed through the hills.
"Best get going," Jemison said.
After that, we worked quickly. We raided the helicopter of its supplies. Roy found one of the snapped helicopter blades and brought it with him—the sharp edges would slice nicely through the Infected. It was waste not, die not these days.
Marta sorted through the bodies as she retrieved her arrows from their bodies. These carcasses were so decayed and old that there was little left for humans to use, but she found an old pack of cigarettes on one of them.
"Still smells like corpse rot," Jemison muttered as he lit up, but he kept smoking the cig.
Waste not.
Another moan pierced through the night.
"Looks like it's time for this party to hit the road." Jemison said.
"Before something crashes it." Roy added.
"Something already has." Marta said, glaring at me.
I ignored her. I'd save my breath.
Waste not.